Antonio Banderas Quotes

I want art to make me think. In order to do that, it may piss me off, or make me uncomfortable. That promotes awareness and change, or at least some discussion.

I know I'm not the greatest singer or dancer, but that doesn't interest me. I'm interested in being provocative and pushing people's buttons.

I really appreciate Barry Jenkins as a filmmaker and the fact that he's always wanting to push the envelope and challenge perspective and make people uncomfortable in a way that doesn't seem like it's allowed anymore.

I think new plays are vastly more surprising and challenging and inspiring; I hear from audiences all the time that they are delighted when they see plays about the world we live in now, at this moment.

I like to do shows that open a dialogue.

I want to put concepts in front of people that make them laugh or smile or even hate what I do. I'm not interested in just putting clothes in stores.

I almost never try to make the audience comfortable. I wouldn't want that if I were in the audience.

My films don't have instant impact because they're dense with ideas that people have not thought about. It takes a while for the American public to wrap its head around some of the things I'm saying.

Theater publicly reveals the human condition through appealing to both intellect and emotion. Architecture, whether lowly or exalted, can do the same.

Theatre can be so patronising. So often, it's just proselytising for the theatre.

I don't see that many movies lately that are actually about something, that are trying to challenge something about the way that people interact.

Acting, to me, has been many things: It's a business, and it's a craft, and it's a political act - it's whatever adjective is most applicable.

I do not make movies to send any message, but my treatment makes my viewers think on the subject.

I do think that we all draw limits and I feel like part of the work of an artist is it shouldn't be fun. This shouldn't be comfortable. I'm not looking to make people feel unsafe, but I am looking to make people feel uncomfortable.

It is very easy to make clear what you want a film to say, but I did not wish to engage in overt propaganda, even for the right cause. I wanted to create an experience through the films, something where people could have the freedom of their own response to them.

I think it's part of the responsibility of an artist to shock, to upset, to make people think differently, and to surprise people. And that's where the good humor is, if there's a surprise and there's something unexpected. Something that's not normal, not in the realm of general living expectations.

I try to make myself, and subsequently the audience, as uncomfortable as possible, whether it's completely desecrating a song they thought was one thing, or getting too drunk to really do a very good job.

I want to entertain people, but with some substance.

In my opinion, theater shouldn't give advice to citizens.

A great byproduct of a TV show, movie, or play is when it can act as a catalyst for someone.

I never deliberately set out to shock, but when people don't walk out of my plays I think there is something wrong.

The necessity for 'professionals' in the entertainment industry is being constantly challenged.

There's something strange about theater. My characters consistently demonize elitism, but of course it's taking place in a theater where only so many people can see it. I've been in silly popcorn movies - the kind of thing that as an actor you might feel embarrassed about - but those movies reach many more people.

I think theatre should always be somewhat suspect.

Art should walk a tightrope. That's what art should be. Art should be dangerous. You can't be scared to say something with it. People love to talk about how comics are real art and real literature, so why not use these characters to talk about real things, even if it is dangerous?